When you think of a typical fast-food worker, do you think of someone enthusiastic, outgoing and friendly? If you worked in "quick service" (as the industry refers to itself) or have a loved one who did/does, you may have a different view of the typical behavior associated with these workers. And as more older people work in this business, there are pockets of exemplary behavior.

But let's go back to a typical worker, not the outliers.

I rarely go to fast-food outlets, but when I have, my observation of the workers is mostly folks who do the minimum and act like they don't really want to be there.

So imagine my delight to encounter one of the aforementioned outliers the other day. He cheerily took my drive-thru order and when delivering my order he was enthusiastic, energetic, and friendly. He smiled and engaged me, looking me in the eye and chatting beyond just the transaction ("here's your order"). How great!

I didn't think about talking to him about his attitude or his boss to see why his behavior was so pleasantly beyond the stereotype. I wonder if he's nearly always this way, or if he was having a particularly good day. Did he show this behavior in the interview, making it easy to hire him? Does he get along well with his manager, getting kudos and encouragement, or is this just the way he always is?

So many questions. I always want to know why people behave significantly better than their peers. Then we can understand how to hire or incent others to follow the exemplar's behavior.

"Great thought provoking question Rebecca! Those outliers probably started their training in “going above and beyond” during their formative years. As a result, they expect exceptional service and deliver great service instinctively. Enthusiasm and service excellence are second nature to them but may be initially perceived by others as disingenuous. Interviewers would be wise to use behaviorally-based interview questions with lots of probing to draw this person’s demonstrated talents and personality out into the light. There are plenty of outliers out there (we just need to pay attention and recognize them when we meet them).

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Pilla Nageshwara Rao

September 19, 2017 05:28 PM

"Madam, the behavior shown by the person is purely diplomatic and customer oriented because he can make his owner happy by making you happy by his behavior and you will definitely make voice propaganda about the outlet so that it get's popularized. The Market share increase and outlet go in Profit by better sales. This is the motive behind his behavior